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The Top 10 Stories of May 8, 2012

Quote of the day. "Our most important goal is to empower and liberate undocumented students, so we can come out of the shadows." - Jessica Lee, 20, an undocumented Bryn Mawr student from South Korea and co-founder of Students for Undocumented Dreams & Decision Equity Now, on efforts to make tuition at private colleges affordable. (USA Today)

1. Health care increasingly out of reach for millions of Americans. Tens of millions of adults under age 65 – both those with insurance and those without – saw their access to health care worsen dramatically over the past decade, according to a study abstract released Monday. (McClatchy)

2. Border Patrol gets first new strategy in 8 years. The U.S. Border Patrol on Tuesday unveiled its first national strategy in eight years, a period in which the number of agents more than doubled and apprehensions of people entering illegally from Mexico dropped to a 40-year low. (Associated Press)

3. House GOP wants more for Pentagon.House Republicans spelled out defense funding increases they are seeking above President Obama’s request, including $1 billion more for Israeli anti-missile defense systems. (Washington Post)

4. Al-Qaeda airline bomb plot disrupted. The CIA and overseas intelligence partners disrupted an al-Qaeda plot to blow up civilian aircraft using an advanced explosive device designed by the terrorist network’s affiliate in Yemen, U.S. officials said Monday. (Washington Post)

5. Bank of America braces for dual onslaught from shareholders, protesters. Shareholders making their way to Bank of America Corp.'s annual meeting Wednesday in uptown Charlotte may find themselves weaving through scores of protesters angry over everything from coal-project financing to executive pay. (McClatchy Newspapers)

6. Karzai summons U.S. envoy over civilian deaths. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has summoned the US ambassador and NATO's chief in Aghanistan over a series of attacks by NATO forces that have allegedly taken a large death toll on civilians. (Al Jazeera)

7. U.S. and Europe press Iran before next nuclear talks. The United States on Monday injected a note of caution into the mood of optimism surrounding recently revived talks on Iran’s contentious uranium enrichment program, calling on the Iranians to take “urgent, practical steps” to prove their sincerity in complying with obligations on the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons. (New York Times)

8. Greek parties have little chance of forming government. Now the worst case scenario has arrived: Greece threatens to become ungovernable. The situation after Sunday's election in Greece looks hopeless. No matter which coalition of parties one calculates, whether big or small, left or right wing, it is impossible to come up with a viable majority government. (Spiegel)

9. Netanyahu surprise gives Israel grand coalition. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu formed a unity government on Tuesday in a surprise move that could give him a freer hand to attack Iran''s nuclear facilities and seek peace with the Palestinians. (Reuters)

10. Putin takes helm as police punish Moscow dissent. The clampdown underlined the challenge ahead for Mr. Putin, who even as the sweeps were taking place promised to expand Russians’ rights and freedoms, as well as their direct participation in government. (New York Times)

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